Retail stores aren’t the only ones out to rip people off these days. Many other establishments are just as bad, if not worse.

A word of caution to individuals opening a new bank account — don’t use a large check. My husband opened a new checking account a few months ago with Umpqua bank, using a check for just under $2900.00 and didn’t see a penny of his money for over 21-days. A long time to hold a check.

It seems that someone was using his social security number and had bounced a check at another bank, which ended up getting reported to ChexSystems, just four-days after he opened his account. Nevermind that the ChexSystems report gave the name on the account — which was obviously not my husband.

Umpqua made absolutely no attempt to get to the bottom of it or verify my husbands identity. They simply closed his account and held his money for 21-days, which stretched out to 23-days. When the reimbursement check arrived in the mail, they didn’t even bother to pay him interest for the period of time they held his funds.

This is simply wrong.

To top it off the manager refused to help and she was very rude about the entire situation. We’ve added Umpqua to our list of banks we refuse to use because of their poor business practices.

It’s a good thing that account wasn’t opened with money that was earmarked for groceries, rent or utilities — it could have be devastating for most families. Fortunately, my husband was smart enough to have funds on reserve, but that’s not really the point is it?

It’s not too late to take Umpqua to court. Are there any good attorneys out there who are interested in taking on a well-documented case against Umpqua in court?

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The author of this site is not an attorney and does not practice law in Michigan or any other state. Any opinions expressed here are just that – opinion. If you have a legal issue, please contact an attorney for legal advice.